Vitter dodges scandal talk

Sen. David Vitter has the routine down pat: walk briskly through the Capitol, eyes glued to the BlackBerry, glance up for only a second when reporters ask about past controversies.

“I’m going to a vote right now and also doing a phone call, thanks,” he told POLITICO recently.

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A couple days later came a familiar refrain: “I’m in the middle of something right now,” he said, directing a reporter to instead inquire with his office.

Vitter has perfected the silent treatment. And it seems to be working in his Senate race.

His opponents continue to question the Louisiana Republican on his prostitution scandal of three years ago — when his name came up in the D.C. Madam’s phone book. He’s also been pressed about his decision to employ an aide accused of attacking his girlfriend with a knife. Vitter’s Democratic opponent, Rep. Charlie Melancon, has hammered Vitter in campaign ads, calling on him to clear the air.

Vitter has said next to nothing on these controversies. He rarely talks to the Washington media, and he has barely discussed the issues in the local press. And why should he? He’s up by double digits in every recent poll.

Vitter’s campaign accuses Melancon of launching an “extremely desperate” array of character attacks because he is losing on the issues central to voters’ concerns.

But his fellow Louisianan, Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu, would love to hear some answers from Vitter, especially regarding his decision to keep an aide on the payroll after he was arrested following accusations of an assault.

“There are a lot of people interested in the details of that,” Landrieu said, calling Vitter’s decision to keep his aide Brent Furer on his payroll a “real failure in judgment.”

“The more honest a person is, the better,” said Landrieu, who has a very tense relationship with Vitter.

In Louisiana, he’s just as assiduous about avoiding open questions regarding his past.

Vitter’s campaign events are typically tightly controlled formats that limit his access to hostile questioners — allowing him to push his message railing against the Obama administration’s agenda while avoiding distracting encounters with the press. Melancon and Vitter have squabbled over debate formats and will participate in just one televised matchup a few days before the Nov. 2 election.

In an era when similar scandals have ended politicians’ careers, Vitter’s silent strategy not only seems to be working; he’s trying to turn the questions back on his opponent.